1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to orthopedic braces. More particularly, the present application describes a hinge for an orthopedic brace having a condyle pad that is adjustable toward and away from a joint.
2. Description of the Related Art
Orthopedic knee braces are typically worn either to support a healthy knee joint and prevent injury, or to stabilize a knee joint that has been destabilized by an injury or other condition. These braces generally include rigid structural components that support or stabilize the knee joint. The rigid structural components are dynamically linked together by one or more hinges that enable controlled pivotal movement of the knee joint during user activity or rehabilitative therapy. The brace is positioned on the leg such that the hinges traverse the knee joint, while the rigid components are secured to the leg above and below the knee joint.
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that destabilizes the knee joint. The disease commonly results from aging, knee joint overuse, or injury. A person afflicted with osteoarthritis suffers chronic pain when his or her knee joint is statically or dynamically loaded. The pain is caused by an unbalanced loading on the knee joint. The unbalanced loading often closes a compartment between the condyles of the femur and tibia. When these condyles contact one another, their contacting surfaces develop painful abrasions.
Wearing an orthopedic knee brace on the affected leg is one common noninvasive method of treating osteoarthritis pain. These braces apply a force to a medial or lateral side of the knee in order to unload the affected compartment of the knee joint and eliminate contact between the femur and tibia. U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,698 discloses an example of such a brace. This brace applies a force to the knee on that side of the knee remote from the compartment having osteoarthritis as the knee moves to extension. Preferably, the force is applied at a point about 10xc2x0 to 15xc2x0 posterior of the normal axis of rotation of the knee.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,970 discloses a knee brace having a medial condylar pad 34 and a lateral condylar pad 36 that are each independently adjustable in side-to-side motion. This independent adjustment permits either medial condylar pad 34 or lateral condylar pad 36 to have variable pressure with respect to a user""s knee 26.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,294 discloses a hinge assembly 14 for an orthopedic knee brace 10 that pivotally couples an upper arm 34 and a lower arm 46. The hinge assembly includes a pad assembly 24, 26, a hinge 22, and upper and lower adjustment members 74, 88 enabling adjustment of the normal force applied by the hinge assembly to the knee joint for the treatment of osteoarthritis. The hinge includes an end of the upper arm, an end of the lower arm, outer and inner hinge plates 58, 60 positioned on opposite sides of the ends, and upper and lower hinge fasteners 68, 82. The upper and lower hinge fasteners each have a bore therethrough that is internally threaded. The upper hinge fastener rotatably connects the end of the upper arm to the outer and inner hinge plates and the lower hinge fastener rotatably connects the end of the lower arm to the outer and inner hinge plates. The upper adjustment member has external threads that are received by the internal threads of the upper hinge fastener to telescopically couple the upper adjustment member to the upper hinge fastener. The lower adjustment member likewise has external threads that are received by the internal threads of the lower hinge fastener to telescopically couple the lower adjustment member to the lower hinge fastener. Both the upper and lower adjustment members have ends that are substantially fixedly coupled to the pad holder. As a result, the pad assembly is selectively displaceable toward or away from the hinge when the user selectively displaces the upper and lower adjustment members through the upper and lower bores of the upper and lower hinge fasteners.
No current brace allows a wearer to provide greater pressure on an anterior portion of his or her knee as compared to a posterior portion. Such a brace would be advantageous for both treating and preventing certain types of injuries.
The preferred embodiments of the brace hinge with telescoping condyle pad have several features, no single one of which is solely responsible for their desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of this brace hinge with telescoping condyle pad as expressed by the claims that follow, its more prominent features will now be discussed briefly. After considering this discussion, and particularly after reading the section entitled xe2x80x9cDetailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments,xe2x80x9d one will understand how the features of the preferred embodiments provide advantages, which include the capability to apply greater pressure to an anterior portion of a joint than to a posterior portion of the joint, and vice versa.
A preferred embodiment of the brace hinge comprises a first hinge plate including an anterior aperture and a posterior aperture. A lateral/medial force application assembly is attached to the first hinge plate by an anterior adjustment member and a posterior adjustment member. The adjustment members are connected at a medial end of each to the force application assembly, and the anterior adjustment member telescopingly engages the anterior aperture and the posterior adjustment member telescopingly engages the posterior aperture, such that manipulation of the adjustment members enables adjustment of a distance between the first hinge plate and the force application assembly.
Another preferred embodiment comprises a method of treating a knee. The method comprises the steps of applying a brace to a leg including the knee, and applying pressure to a medial or lateral side of the knee. The pressure is applied to the knee such that an anterior portion of the knee is under greater pressure than a posterior portion of the knee, or vice versa.